Pearson buys Schoolnet for $230 million


The deal marks the latest in a long line of ed-tech acquisitions for Pearson as it continues its focus on digital learning.

Pearson PLC, publisher of the Financial Times and Penguin books and a major player in the ed-tech market, has agreed to buy the educational technology company Schoolnet for $230 million in cash.

London-based Pearson on April 26 said it expects the acquisition to be broadly neutral to earnings per share in 2011 and to enhance its earnings per share and return on invested capital in 2012.

New York-based Schoolnet, which aligns assessment, curriculum, and other services to help personalize instruction and improve teacher effectiveness, reportedly serves more than 5 million U.S. students from pre-kindergarten through the 12th grade.

Schoolnet’s data-based solutions will complement Pearson’s products and services that help boost student achievement through diagnostic tools and tailored instruction, Pearson said. These products include Waterford, SuccessMaker, and NovaNET.

Schoolnet customers, in turn, will benefit from Pearson content and technology such as PowerSchool for student information, AIMSweb for intervention, America’s Choice for school improvement services, eCollege and Fronter for online learning platforms, TutorVista for online targeted tutoring, Data Solutions and National Transcript Center (NTC) for interoperability and state longitudinal data systems, and the Family Education Network for parent and teacher education.

Schoolnet’s solutions are used by more than a third of the nation’s largest urban school districts, the company says, including Chicago Public Schools and the School District of Philadelphia.

Pearson Chief Executive Marjorie Scardino said, “Being able to offer a connective digital spine for learning has been Pearson’s goal for years. … Together we can make that spine more flexible and powerful for schools, teachers, and students.”

Based in New York City, Schoolnet was founded in 1998 by Jonathan D. Harber and Denis P. Doyle, who developed the Schoolnet instructional management suite to help school systems use data to boost learning.

The Obama administration, through programs such as Race to the Top, supports the use of comprehensive data systems that improve college-readiness. As part of the administration’s reform agenda, some $17 billion has been allocated to states and districts to support school improvement.

Harber, Schoolnet’s chief executive, will stay on, along with his senior leadership team, and will continue to serve as CEO of Schoolnet and as a senior executive at Pearson.

“K-12 schools have begun a revolutionary transformation towards evidence-driven instruction to improve student achievement,” Harber said. “Personalized learning for students and educators is key to advancing student progress, and we are pleased to be joining the Pearson family in this pursuit.”

This is just the latest in a long line of ed-tech acquisitions for Pearson as it continues its focus on digital learning. Last year, Pearson bought The Administrative Assistants Ltd. (aal), maker of the eSIS web-based student information system—boosting Pearson’s reach in the SIS market from 12 million to 15 million students and giving the company a third of the U.S. market share for SIS software.

Other major ed-tech purchases for Pearson in the last five years include PowerSchool, Chancery Software, Waterford Early Learning, eCollege, and TutorVista.

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